The Time-Crunched Cyclist Podcast by CTS

After 24 years of coaching athletes, Adam Pulford has seen enough training plans, races, breakthroughs, failures, and comebacks to recognize which lessons continue to matter.
In this episode, Adam steps away from the charts and physiology to share 20 observations from his coaching career: why fitness isn't performance, why recovery matters as much as workload, why perfect training doesn't exist, what winning and losing can teach us, and why long-term development requires more patience than most athletes expect.

HOST
Adam Pulford has been a CTS Coach for nearly two decades and holds a B.S. in Exercise Physiology. He's participated in and coached hundreds of athletes for endurance events all around the world.

CTS Cycling Camps: https://trainright.com/camps/
​​Free Cycling Training Assessment: https://trainright.com/cycling-training-assessment-welcome/
Interested in working with a coach? Schedule a free consult: https://trainright.com/coaching/cycling/
Self-coached athlete? Check out our TrainRight Membership: https://trainright.com/membership/
Find more free resources here: https://trainright.com/blog/

Resources:
Meditations by Marcus Aurelius 
Beyond Thoughts by Joseph Nguyen 
Don’t Believe Everything You Think by Joseph Nguyen
Awareness by Athlete de Mellow
Find Your Why by Simon Sinek 
On The Nature of Things by Lucretius
Atomic Habits by James Clear
Flow by Mihaly Czeskmihaly 
Deep Work by Cal Newport 
Waking Up App by Sam Harris

A successful 100-mile ride is rarely the result of one thing going exceptionally well. It's what happens when your fitness, fueling, pacing, and execution all come together on the same day.
Coach Adam Pulford breaks down how much to eat and drink, why the opening miles should feel easier than you think, what to prioritize with one week versus six weeks to prepare, and how to use your training data to guide your effort.
And Adam's fourth piece of advice might be the simplest: bring your friends. Because 100 miles is usually faster, and definitely funner, with good wheels around you.

HOST
Adam Pulford has been a CTS Coach for nearly two decades and holds a B.S. in Exercise Physiology. He's participated in and coached hundreds of athletes for endurance events all around the world.

​​Free Cycling Training Assessment: https://trainright.com/cycling-training-assessment-welcome/
Interested in working with a coach? Schedule a free consult: https://trainright.com/coaching/cycling/
Self-coached athlete? Check out our TrainRight Membership: https://trainright.com/membership/
Find more free resources here: https://trainright.com/blog/

Resources:
https://youtu.be/_SQA-9uzVcc?si=g9UPnFf8tHGZ_0LM
https://youtu.be/kPjy5rejBSg?si=mRa7_JewytDDOBlt
https://www.trainingpeaks.com/my-training-plans/threshold_6_week_100milePrep 
https://www.trainingpeaks.com/my-training-plans/VO2_6_week_100milePrep 
https://trainright.com/camps/

Torque training has become almost synonymous with low-cadence riding. But simply dropping to 60 RPM doesn't guarantee you're producing more force or creating the adaptation you're after.
Coach Adam Pulford breaks down the relationship between torque, cadence, power, and force production; explains why the gym may be the best place to raise your strength ceiling; and shows where low-cadence work actually belongs in a cyclist's training year.

HOST
Adam Pulford has been a CTS Coach for nearly two decades and holds a B.S. in Exercise Physiology. He's participated in and coached hundreds of athletes for endurance events all around the world.

​​Free Cycling Training Assessment: https://trainright.com/cycling-training-assessment-welcome/
Interested in working with a coach? Schedule a free consult: https://trainright.com/coaching/cycling/
Self-coached athlete? Check out our TrainRight Membership: https://trainright.com/membership/
Find more free resources here: https://trainright.com/blog/

Resources:
Strength Exercise F-v and P-v Profiles as Predictors of Elite Sprint-Cycling Performance - PubMed
Power-time, force-time, and velocity-time curve analysis during the jump squat: impact of load - PubMed 
58. HIGH INTENSITY TORQUE TRAINING CAN INCREASE CYCLING PERFORMANCE
Effects of Cycling Training at Imposed Low Cadences: A Systematic Review - PubMed
Effect of Cycling Cadence on Neuromuscular Function: A Systematic Review of Acute and Chronic Alterations - PMC 
Pro Workouts: Torque Efforts with Noemi Rueegg | EF Pro Cycling 
https://trainright.com/camps/

Does FTP actually matter for criterium racing?
Coach Adam Pulford breaks down why your aerobic engine plays such a big role in an explosive race, how a higher FTP can reduce the cost of repeated attacks, and why sprinty "crit dawgs" and breakaway riders should approach their training differently.
Plus, why none of those watts matter if you haven't developed the race craft to use them!

HOST
Adam Pulford has been a CTS Coach for nearly two decades and holds a B.S. in Exercise Physiology. He's participated in and coached hundreds of athletes for endurance events all around the world.

​​Free Cycling Training Assessment: https://trainright.com/cycling-training-assessment-welcome/
Interested in working with a coach? Schedule a free consult: https://trainright.com/coaching/cycling/
Self-coached athlete? Check out our TrainRight Membership: https://trainright.com/membership/
Find more free resources here: https://trainright.com/blog/

Resources:
https://australianfootballstrengthcoach.com.au/3-energy-systems-quick-introduction/
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/books/NBK546695/ 
https://strengthmatters.com/anaerobic-lactic-energy-system/
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=On4W1OVrFig

Recovery isn't the break between training. Recovery IS training.
In this episode, CTS Head Cycling Coach Adam Pulford explains how he structures recovery blocks with everyone from beginners to elite athletes. Learn why recovery doesn't always need to last a full week, how to know when you've earned one, and why the athletes who recover best often perform best.
If recovery weeks make you anxious, this episode is for you!

HOST
Adam Pulford has been a CTS Coach for nearly two decades and holds a B.S. in Exercise Physiology. He's participated in and coached hundreds of athletes for endurance events all around the world.

​​Free Cycling Training Assessment: https://trainright.com/cycling-training-assessment-welcome/
Interested in working with a coach? Schedule a free consult: https://trainright.com/coaching/cycling/
Self-coached athlete? Check out our TrainRight Membership: https://trainright.com/membership/
Find more free resources here: https://trainright.com/blog/

Resources:
https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC3905295/
https://trainright.com/coaching-consultation/
Recovery Podcast with Christie Aschwandan: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/trainright-podcast/id1494799053?i=1000722793917 

Regulation of Muscle Glycogen Repletion, Muscle Protein Synthesis and Repair Following Exercise - PMC